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bhapiorelse

Listed below are comments made by bhapiorelse between Friday, 17th October 2008 and Monday, 20th October 2008.

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The stunted country 01:19am on 20 Oct 2008 Wow, it's nice to see that the US is not the only country to deal with the issue of local v. state v. federal governance! Actually, until I read this article I didn't even know that there were 8 states in Australia!

Sometimes, having a variety of departments in government allows for an interesting system of checks and balances - maybe one state is doing something different that another state may find interesting, or maybe your federal government can pick and choose portions of each states' rules that fit most people, like ours tries to do.

You are a young country - younger than the USA - and a true world force to be reckoned with. You have a lot to be proud of; you've overcome greater adversity than almost every other new country out there. Who cares if your ancestry is a mixed mutt bag - so is ours in the USA. It is really a strength you can play upon.

You are right, the advertising campaign is a bust - much of the world does recognize such things as the Great Barrier Reef and associates it with Australia, but just as easily associated are kangaroos and koalas and other wildlife indiginous to your great country. I saw an ad for Australia recently and it wasn't until the very end of the ad that I realized it was for your country, not a portion of mine.

My husband and I dream of visiting some day - mostly havent' because of the expense of flying literally halfway around the world from Wisconsin - and we know there won't be enough time to visit every portion of Australia, but intend to do some very thorough research before we come (I am envisioning 5-7 years, because of kids and budgets) and pick our destinations based on our own interests - not just the splashy oft-touted images seen throughout the world.
Taking the temperature in Florida 00:03am on 20 Oct 2008 Dear kennisis; I hope you understand that I have long enjoyed being your Southern neighbor, as have all of my friends, family and various and sundry acquaintances (many of whom fish and hunt in various parts of YOUR country). The Americas consist of many, many countries and cultures and it kind of burns my butt when someone from "accross the pond" makes such a generalization as referring to the USA as "America" as though you and our other neighbors don't exist. Believe me when I say that no one that I know refers to our country as "America", though most do refer to themselves as "American" as "United Statsien" just doesn't flow (Like Mexican or Canadian or Guatamalan or German or French or English or Iranian or...or...or).
Who to believe? 3:53pm on 18 Oct 2008 One thing you have failed to mention - we have a truly historic election year! Either we have a non-white man in office (Open the door for everyone!), or McCain get's voted in and we have elderly rights and a woman as a backup! I feel as though the first million cracks have been made in that glass ceiling (to borrow from Hilary Clinton) and that we are on the right track for a celebration of diversity!
Taking the temperature in Florida 3:41pm on 18 Oct 2008 Matthew, I think you've missed something. We ARE a country, not just a continent. We are a diverse group of people in a grand state - not just a juxtaposition of city-states like some post-neolithic society. I do identify with the guy from Alabama sitting with his cooler of beverages, and the New York cab driver, and the highly paid ad exec from LA, and the techie from the Silicon Valley. Even here in the North Woods, I would defend the Texas rancher as my compatriot and neighbor (though it takes 25 or more hours to drive from his home to mine). We are a HUGE country that takes a little less than half a continent - happily sharing the land with our good friends in Canada and Mexico (who each hold a giant portion of the continent). I think your thought was to display the vastness of our holdings and the array of landscape that we cover, but make sure you choose your words wisely and don't generalize - we are not interested in taking over land or political space from either of our neighbors.
End of the road 3:26pm on 18 Oct 2008 One of my favorite vacation spots here in the States is everywhere! I love stuffing the kids in the backseat of my car and just picking a road to travel for a week or so! I am very happy that you got to have a similar experience while you were here.

In over 30 years (my parents had the same vacation plans I use), I have seen only a small portion of my own country - and every single part of us is different, amazing and interesting. It is more than a bit daunting to realize that I have not seen some of the greatest wonders of our country (the Grand Canyon, for example) simply because it takes about 3 days to drive out there and I just haven't done it, yet. We frequently dip our toes in the frosty waters of Lake Superior or Lake Michigan (we live in Northern Wisconsin), swim in the Mighty Mississippi, hike the great North Woods and canoe or boat in the many beautiful waterways. We enjoy eating the various "local" cuisine - even though the kids didn't like grits or okra, at least they tried them! We also enjoy all the friendly, welcoming and proud people of our great Country.

In discussing your trip with a friend last night, we would also like to point out that the porch light is always on - that is to say we welcome everyone regardless of faith, ability, color, or country of origin and that is sometimes our strength and sometimes leaves us open for hostility. We are not, as a nation, inclined to try to take over any one else in the world (I just got done reading a post by militant Iraqi's who think we want their country), nor do we need to. We are a vast land already, and while I do truly believe that as we become more interconnected globally some lines between nations will blur, there is no way to make a single, unified, global governmental entity and there should be no fear anywhere that we believe our system of government is the only good system. Obviously, England has been in operation for many centuries with a great deal of success (why mess with a good thing) as have most Asian, African and Middle Eastern cultures. I do not have to agree with how another country is run, but I have the choice to live where I want and believe what I want, and in the USA I have the right to express my personal convictions without fear of reprisal.

So welcome, everyone around the world. Bring a happy heart and an open mind, and you will see that there is a little bit of each of your own cultures embedded within ours.
Fast food nation 10:34pm on 17 Oct 2008 I have to agree with tx_girl. If you know where to shop, you can eat anything in the good old USA, just like in every other country. For those who complain about bad American food, I have eaten bad European and Asian food - at least in my mind. The people with whom I was dining enjoyed it imensely and thought it was quite good. I am not a vegetarian nor will I ever be one but that doesn't mean my family doesn't eat healthy. None of us have a weight problem, all of us exercise. It's called "balance".

Having said that, one of my FAVORITE burger recipes includes smoked Chipotle peppers (from our garden), green olives (no pimentios), feta cheese, and a light, homemade dressing that I will not share with anyone outside my family but that contains a lot of different yummy things and is mixed directly with the ground meat. For a lighter, healthier burger we usually mix equal parts beef and turkey or chicken either pre-ground or ground together then mixed with all seasonings. I like to either mix the cheese right into the meat, or sprinkle a bit on top. Then LIGHTLY toast the olives and peppers together in a bit of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) - my hubby likes to add onions, garlic and other great things as well - or stick toppings in basket right on the grill with the burgers, and assemble on your choice (read, whatever is in the house at the time) of pita bread, wheat or white buns or over mashed, fried or chunked potatoes or rice. Burgers are an American tradition but like everything else in our great country - there is no WRONG way to do it!

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